LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State women's soccer team went toe-to-toe with Western Athletic Conference rival California Baptist but dropped a 1-0 decision in a physical match that saw two players sent off with red cards.
The Aggies (1-9-2, 0-2-0) set the tone early with their physical play as they dominated possession for the first 10 minutes. During that time,
Shea O'Connor had two opportunities to score, in the third and 6
th minutes, but the Lancers' (9-2-1, 2-0-0) Romy Salvador was there for the save both times.
The physical play continued, with each side trading fouls and possession as the half went on before
Corey Kizer almost put the Aggies in front, with a rocket from just outside the 18 that hit off the far post in the 27
th minute.
Then, the chippy play boiled over, with an Aggie being sent off and a Lancer handed a yellow card after a fracas near midfield in the 42
nd minute. Despite only being able to play with 10 players, NM State battled and set up O'Connor who a ripped a shot from just inside the box that hit the crossbar with 10 seconds left in the half and the Aggies and Lancers went into the break scoreless.
With NM State down a man, CBU upped its attack out of halftime with Rola Badawiya hitting a shot off the post in the 53
rd minute and Fong making a save in the 59
th minute. The renewed push for California Baptist then payed off as Badawiya flicked in a cross from Elisa Soderhelm with her heel for a 1-0 Aggie deficit.
O'Connor almost tied the game just five minutes later but her chance missed just over the post before a save by Fong in the 71
st minute to keep New Mexico State in the match. The Aggies persistence almost paid off when O'Connor stole the ball from a CBU defender and raced towards a breakaway goal. However, the Lancer defender took O'Connor down from behind before she entered the 18-yard box. This resulted in a red card for the Lancers' Erin Gallagher and a free kick for New Mexico State that was cleared by Salvador.
Now back on an even playing field with 10 players for each squad, NM State came to life on offense, pushing the ball wide with
Emma Smith which led to numerous chances. The best chance came in the 82
nd minute when Smith found O'Connor in the 6-yard box but her one-time finish was stopped by Salvador. The Lancers then parked the bus and ran out the clock handing New Mexico State a 1-0 defeat.
California Baptist posted 18 shots and finished the match with 12 fouls, a yellow card and a red card. NM State finished with 9 shots, three on goal, with Fong making three saves on the afternoon.
The Aggies are back in action with a WAC road trip to Utah Valley on Thursday, Oct. 10, at 5 p.m. (MT) and Seattle U on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 8 p.m. Both matches are set to stream live on the
WAC Digital Network.
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